In this guide, you will find resources specifically designed to help you find articles for your research assignment. Keep an eye out for tabs within each page before moving on.
If you need help with anything in this guide, check out our Need Help? page to see your options or message your librarian in Canvas.
The first step to any research essay is understanding what the assignment is asking you to do. For this assignment, you need to find three sources through the Butler Library website (catalog or databases). You cannot use sources found on Google or another Internet search.
You are going to write an informational essay about an aspect of technology. This is a pretty broad topic so hopefully you will be able to choose something that you are interested in researching and writing about!
Below are some examples of topics - you are NOT limited to these. Some of these general topics have subtopics listed below. You could choose to limit your essay to one of these subtopics.
You will probably begin with a general idea of a topic. As you search for sources, your topic may become more specific or focused. You may choose to talk about the development of a technology throughout history, the effects or consequences of a technology, or how a certain technology may impact the future world.
Printing
printing press, Gutenberg press, movable type, early print culture, woodblock printing
Telegraph
Morse code, electric telegraph, heliograph, optical telegraph
Writing tools
stylus history, cuneiform tablets, quill pen, fountain pen
Timekeeping
sundial, water clock, chronometer, mechanical clock, horology, pendulum clock, atomic clock
Agriculture
plows, scythes, threshing machine, cotton gin, irrigation systems
Transportation
Bicycles, railroads, airplanes, automobiles
Prosthetics
Artificial limbs, prosthetic development, bionic limbs, myoelectric prosthesis, neural prosthetics
Medical imaging
X-rays, CT scan, MRI technology, ultrasound, nuclear medicine
Vaccine technology
vaccine history, immunization development, vaccine storage, inoculation history, vaccine production, cold chain technology
Stethoscope
Heart monitors
Gene editing (CRISPR)
Artificial Intelligence
Virtual reality
3D printing
Blockchain technology
Robotics
Nanotechnology
Television
Radio
Internet
Satellites
Social media
Mobile phones